


Under Greece's stars

by Lily_Anna



Category: Formula 1 RPF
Genre: Flashbacks, I Wrote This Instead of Sleeping, It's been 0 days since I last cried about that damn holiday in greece, M/M, Nostalgia, Past Relationship(s), Secret Relationship, Teen Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-02
Updated: 2020-02-02
Packaged: 2021-03-12 15:41:33
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,704
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22527814
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lily_Anna/pseuds/Lily_Anna
Summary: Lewis hates winter testing but chatting with George is pleasant enough to make him forget how much he despises it; at least until the young driver starts talking about his holiday with his best friend Alex. His story reminds him about the times when him and Nico used to spend the holidays together and the nostalgia hits him like a punch in the stomach.
Relationships: Alexander Albon/George Russell, Lewis Hamilton/Nico Rosberg, Minor or Background Relationship(s)
Comments: 12
Kudos: 38





	Under Greece's stars

**Author's Note:**

> "Thanks God someone invented holidays in Greece."- Lewis & Nico, at some point, probably.
> 
> I don't know what is this, but at some point it becomes plain sad and I'm (not) sorry  
Also, I'm not the only one who see similarities between Alex and George's friendship and Lewis and Nico's? 
> 
> GENERAL DISCLAIMER: This is a work of fiction. Any resemblance to real events and/or to real persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental. Do not repost.

Lewis hated testing: Barcelona was always cold, not enough nightlife to actually have fun when he went out, journalists who asked him always the same questions about the upcoming season.

This year he was trying to see it in a positive light though, he chatted with the other drivers and he even replied to some of the (stupid) questions the journalists asked him. 

The garage was busy that afternoon and Lewis was talking with George, who was probably the most stereotypical British person he had ever met. Was maybe the accent? Was it because he looked like the type of guy who reads The Sunday Times while eating breakfast? Lewis didn’t know. But apart from being stereotypical, the not-so-rookie-anymore was a nice guy, witty and easy to talk to about both cars and life in general. In that moment George was telling him about his holiday with his best friend Alex, who seemed really strong in his Red Bull car even if it was only the second day of testing. On a positive note, at least the Thai driver wasn’t annoying like his Dutch teammate, setting an actual chance to be written down in Lewis’ Christmas cards list.

“So basically we spent a week in Italy being tourist and going to go kart tracks, you know since we raced there when we were little, and then a week in Austria skiing. We also went to Kitzbühel to see a ski race! It was an amazing experience” says George with a big smile.

“You and Alex seem really close” observes Lewis; “We have been best friends since we were 10 or something, we went on holiday together lots of times and are at each other’s house basically every weekend,” laughs the young Brit “he’s like a family member to me, my parents treat him like it’s their son and Alex’s mother has taken care of me countless times”.

Hearing that sentence made Lewis’ stomach tense, suddenly feeling uncomfortable: something in the other boy’s words reminded him about a friendship which seemed indestructible years ago, but that got torn apart in the cruelest way and that now wasn’t anything else than sad memories.

*******

** _Greece, August 2000_ **

_ Lewis and Nico are best friends. The two fifteen-year-old are joined at the hip, sometimes it’s even difficult to see where Lewis ends and Nico begins. They are always looking for the funniest activity the small greek island has to offer that day and if they don’t find anything interesting, you could find them swimming or exploring the small bays. After dinner they talk about Formula 1, about who is the best driver on the grid, about the possibility to be World Champions in the future. _

_ “Do you think we are gonna make it?” asks Lewis, eyes wide. “We are going to make it and we will do it together” replies Nico, trying to seem more confident than what he actually is. _

_ The last night of their holiday they go stargazing and Lewis finds the courage to take Nico’s hand. Nico, in return, kisses him. _

** _Switzerland, December 2003_ **

_ “This is the first Christmas we spend together since we started dating”, observes Lewis sitting in the armchair next to the fireplace, “besides your parents were very kind to let us use this house during the holidays”. “By now they probably suspect that we are in some kind of relationship and wanted us to have fun. And I don’t mind it at all” giggles Nico, rosy cheeks from the cold outside. _

_ They talk about Lewis’ title in Formula Renault and about being teammates in Formula 1 one day. “We worked well in karting, in F1 we would do wonders” says the Brit; “We truly would be the perfect team” adds Nico taking his hand. _

_ The German tries to teach him how to ski but Lewis keeps planting his face in the snow, so at the end they stay cuddled inside for almost two weeks. _

** _Switzerland, December 2005_ **

_ It has become a tradition to spend Christmas holidays together. Lewis is still a public hazard everytime he tries to put on the skis and Nico has lost any hope he had left but that year they try snowboarding and it seems a little better. They go to long walks in the snow, they visit Christmas markets and drink hot chocolate until they feel sick. _

_ They spend the time relaxing, finally feeling like their careers are going in the right direction: Lewis just won Formula 3 while Nico is GP2 Champion and set to do his debut in Formula 1 in the next season with Williams. _

_ They kiss when the clock strikes midnight on New Years Eve and Nico whispers to him: “One day I will buy a beautiful house in the mountains and we will spend every Christmas like this”. “Before condemning me to holidays in the cold for the rest of my life, you have to marry me” murmures Lewis, grinning at his boyfriend’s reaction. That night, for the first time, they talk about marriage. _

** _Greece, August 2006_ **

_ “Man, I love Greece. I wish I could live here” says Lewis, laying on his beach towel. Both boys needed a break after the busy first half of season. Formula 1 is more stressful that what Nico had imagined and Lewis’ run for the GP2 title has been more complicated than what he had expected. _

_ Thanks God someone invented holidays in Greece. _

_ They explore the small islands with Nico’s boat, swim in the blue sea and eat a lot of pita bread and ice cream (Lewis once decided to combine the two foods and Nico refused to look at him for the whole evening, defining his choice “gross”). Nico’s hair becomes even more blond and he gets a sunburn and the Brit makes fun of him for a week. _

_ “I’ve got big news for next year: I’m signing a contract with McLaren for next season” says Lewis during one of the last evenings of their holiday. “You are what?! Meine Liebe I’m so happy for you! Finally we can race together again” replies Nico beaming. _

_ A gentle breeze is blowing and both boys are lost in thought. _

_ Suddenly Nico speaks: “When I will be World Champion I’m going to marry you and nobody will have a say in the matter”. “What if I win the championship first?” ask Lewis, only half joking. “You will have to wait until I win the championship too before you get my proposal,” replies Nico with a small smile “and I already know the place where I’ll propose”. _

_ Lewis hopes Nico wins the Championship the next year. _

** _United Arab Emirates, December 2016_ **

_ Lewis isn’t in the mood for a party. For God’s sake, he had just lost the championship! _

_ Deep down, is happy for Nico. He has put a lot of effort and deserves it. The Brit doesn’t know if he should be embarrassed because he lost or because he’s angry that his teammate archived his childhood dream. He feels pathetic: he’s laying down in his suite, in one of the most luxurious cities in the world, and he’s sulking. _

_ Suddenly, there’s a knock on his hotel door. “Hello”; “Nico what do you want?” he asks, not in the mood for a conversation with him. But since Nico is Nico and Lewis can’t say no to him, they found themselves in his balcony looking at Abu Dhabi’s skyline. _

_ “When I was younger I always dreamed about this day. I had it planned it since I was 15” says the new World Champion. Lewis doesn’t speak. _

_ “Do you remember our holiday in Greece?” Nico adds after a while. “Which one? We have been plenty of times” he asks. _

_ “The one in which I told you I was going to propose to you when I would win the championship”; “Of course I remember. I never forgot that night”. _

_ “I’m sorry it took me that long to win. Sometimes I thought that maybe if I had won earlier we could have got married…” murmurs the German. “Not even a World Championship could have solved all our problems Nico” he replies abrupt. _

_ “Maybe it was a mistake coming here-”; “Don’t go” pleads the Brit. _

_ Lewis doesn’t recall who starts crying first but the two champions end up sobbing into each other’s arms, saying sorry for countless times in which they made the other suffer. After what seems like a minute, or maybe an hour, they calm down. _

_ “I really need to go now” murmurs the German, slowly distancing himself from the other man. “One last thing: that time you said you knew the place where you wanted to propose. Where is it?” asks the Brit. _

_ “Do you remember when we were fifteen and we went stargazing and you took my hand and we kissed for the first time? It was there” replies Nico with a sad smile. _

_ “For what is worth, I would have said yes” says Lewis. Nico gives him a light goodbye kiss on his forehead and before Lewis can open his eyes, Nico is gone. _

*******

“And so I said to Alex-- Lewis? Are you listening to me?” says George, bringing Lewis back to reality. “What? Yes- I mean no, sorry, I got lost in thought”; “Is everything alright? You look a little shaken” asks the Brit concerned.

“Your story reminded me of a friend I had a few years ago, you know, we used to be really close… It’s sad how things change. I’m glad you and Alex have such a strong friendship” replies Lewis pensive, trying to force himself to smile. “Anyway, I need to talk with James about tyre management. See you at the hotel bar for that drink with Valtteri and Toto?” he adds quickly, finding an excuse to get the hell out of there, not wanting to relive again painful memories about Nico and himself.

George just nods and pats him on the arm, starting to make his way out of the garage.

And if Lewis had paid a little bit more attention, maybe he would have noticed George’s smirk when he had mentioned the word _ “friendship” _, realizing that what what the two young drivers had wasn’t too dissimilar to what he and Nico used to have.

**Author's Note:**

> I hope you liked it! Feel free to leave kudos or comments, I really appreciate them <3  
I apologise if there are mistakes, English is not my first language.


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